Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-09-15
Colonel R F. Maddox started to Los
RErTEK TLMEa AHEAD

CHANGE IL THE CATTLE BUSINESS AND
DEPRESSION OF THE MARKET.
Oaly few years ago the range cattle
raising IL West Texas was in 8 fourishing
state. No actual settler had commenced
TO disturb the cattle kings in the posses
sion of the range. the wide plains were
covered with nutritious grasses, for the
use CT which no rent had to be paid,
T&ncnes were but few in the country, cat
tie barely sufficient In number 10 supply
the demand and fortunes were &C
cumulated rapidly by the cattle
raiser These favorable conditions of
course induced many to engage in the
business. and soon the danger became
visible that in q short time the country
would not support all the cattle raised
and introduced into the western terri
tory CT the state. Then land was pur-
chased in large quantities from the state
to secure the necessary food, and fences
were built inclosing immense quantities
of land.
AS soon as II was observed that under
this policy actual settlement would be ex-
Guided for many years to come, the Legis-
lature passed q beneficial law limiting the
amount Of land which could be bought by
On individual to seven sections, which
law soon was superseded by the so-caIled
eCtual settlers actrequiring actual settle
ment from the purchaser, Improvement
OF the place and limiting the amount OF
land 10 be bought by an individual
to two sections. After this many
orders regulating the sale of land were
passed by the land board, 8 board to
which the administration Of the public
lands was intrusted, and however erro-
neous many of those rules may have been,
the object aimed at by the board to keep
the puoiic lands subject TO actual settle
ment wss good one. These land acts
TO great extent diminished the
profits to be reaped from the cat
tie business Free grass was a
thing Of the past and though railrosd
companies and other corporations,
formed before the passage of the land
acts, were in possession of large bodies
OF land, in most cases the lands owned
were alternate sections and solid body
of land could be obtained only in rare IN
stances. But though the price OF the
common dry land had now advanced to
So per acre and the lease OF the public
lands was increased to 6 cents, the range
was not yet overstocked, and the settlers
svailiDg themselves of the provisions
Of the land laws were not numerous.
This, in connection with the seasonable
years. kept the demand for cattle and
ranch property increasing. 1t wss the
time Of the so-cslled boom. Property ex-
changed hands rapidly, and cattle kings
equaled almost the number of colonies
and majors Of the west. But the
reaction came earlier than ex-
pected, the drouth commenced and
the starvation Of cattle showed
that there were neither provisions SUI
fcient to water nor to feed in unseason-
able years. The demand for cattle and
rsnch property commenced falling of apd
as the actual settlement Of the countryi
Notwithstanding the continued and se-
we're drouth, was increasing constantly,
encroaching as it was called, on the
rights OF the western ranchmsn, more
rapid decrease OF the value OF cattle and
ranch property, and number OF reports
of failures of corporations and private
owners were the necessary consequences
Of these conditions.
LISA we'll known fact that whenever